Why do we homeschool?

Today I was asked why we homeschool. I never quite feel that I fully answer this question when I am asked, there are so many reasons!

1. Learning at home means my kids never have to be the new kid. As a military family, they would be the new kids quite often. I really think this helps our transfer times (something that usually takes a total of six months form start to finish) much less stressful for them.

2. My kids have the freedom to move on or study more on a subject if needed because our learning is tailored to them. We also have an extra 5-6 months of time to spend on school since we don't have to take 2 week holidays twice a year, federal holidays, training days or summer vacation.

3. School shopping is fun! I love buying supplies and curriculum, trying new things. My kids play with educational toys and our house is full of them- more things that count as school supplies!

4. I get to chose what my kids learn. I do follow national standards but it is nice to be able to find individual curricula that actually works with my kids and still goes along with our families beliefs and morals. I personally do not homeschool for religious reasons so it is nice to find lessons that support secular homeschooling and I enjoy finding different secular resources.

5. The world is our classroom... literally!!!! We have homeschooled while living in three different countries, vacations are filled with learning and we have seen and done things some children only read in textbooks.

6. My kids' socialization is controlled. I am not a crazy mom who keeps my kids holed up in the house but friends do need to be approved of. Also, because I am home I am able to watch my kids and what they and their friends do so I can interject if there is anything questionable going on rather than find out through others parents, the principal or the police! I am happy that my kids get to be kids during their growing years- we talk about drugs, sex an other inappropriate behavior but I am happy that their chances of encountering these issues so young is very slim.

7. While we do have difficult days (or weeks sometimes!) I know that all of our hard work is well worth it. My kids are well adjusted and I love our happy moments that i would miss if they were gone 8 hours a day!

Multiplication!!!!!

I just couldn't be prouder of Squidward! The last few weeks, he has been memorizing his multiplication facts and he has them all down 0-12! I promised him something special for all of his hard work- maybe an ice cream night out this weekend :)

Every two schooldays, he would focus on one fact family. First he would make flashcards and using his "magic rocks" he would count out the answer. On the first day he would memorize the x's 0-5 and the second day finish them up with x's 6-12. Each day he would also play online math games and I would give him 2-minute multiplication drills to help him recall the answers quickly. He has been working on them since Christmas and I still can't believe he knows them all :)

What have you done to help your children memorize their multiplication facts?

Quiet Weekend

Saying goodbye to Dad never gets easier, no matter how many times we do it. The picture below is not from this deployment but I think it is one of the most descriptive ways of our feelings on these days.

We have had a quiet weekend. I have been keeping myself busy with making lesson plans, putting together homeschool portfolios and reading some books that I have been to busy to pick up lately. This week we are hitting Tokyo for a modeling job and might be going to Chinatown in Yokohama to celebrate the Chinese New Year!